Fuel saving attachment for an internal-combustion engine



Sept. 4, 1956 D. R. KOONS 2,761,660

FUEL SAVING ATTACHMENT FOR AN INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Aug. 25, l 5 Shee'ts Sheet l (:7- INVENTOR DJ? .lfoa n 5 BY gm.

ATT RNEY D. R. KOONS Sept. 4, 1956 FUEL SAVING ATTACHMENT FOR AN INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Aug. 25, 1954 3 Sheets$heet 2 Sept. 4, 1956 D. R. KOONS FUEL SAVING ATTACHMENT FOR AN INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Aug. 25, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 -ATTORNEY United States FUEL SAVING ATTACHlVIENT FOR AN INTERNAL-COlVIBUSTION ENGINE David R. Koons, Chambersburg, Pa., assignor of one-half to Ralph N. Stifller, Chambersburg, Pa.

This invention relates to a novel unit which may be readily attached to an internal-combustion engine and which provides a bypass between the gasoline storage tank and the engine carburetor by which the gasoline is bypassed to the engine around the carburetor and wherein the gasoline is preheated and converted from a liquid into a gaseous state before entering the engine.

More, particularly, it is an aim of the present invention to provide a unit through the use of which an internal-combustion engine may be efficiently operated with less fuel consumption than by the use of a conventional carburetor.

Anoter object of the invention is to provide a unit having novel means for regulating the supply of theraw gasoline thereto and whereby the gasoline as it is supplied to the heating chamber of the unit will thus be quickly converted into a gaseous state before passing from the unit into the engine.

Another object of the invention is to provide means to prevent the building up of an excessive pressure of the vaporized fuel in the. vaporizing chamber.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a unit having means for regulating the temperature of the vaporizing chamber for thereby partially regulating the rate of flow of the raw fuel thereto.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a unit having novel means to prevent an explosion in the vaporizing chamber in the event of an engine backfire.

Still another object. of the invention is to provide a unit having; a vaporizing chamber heated by exhaust gases from the exhaust manifold.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of an internalcombustion engine and showing the fuel saving unit, in top plan, applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of said unit and a portion of the engine;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view, partly inelevation, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by. the line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectionalview: taken. through the vaporizing chamber, substantially along a plane as indicated. by the line 44 of. Figure 3;

Figure 5 is. a horizontal sectional view through the vaporizing chamber, taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 55 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view on an enlarged scale of a portion of the vaporizing chamber, lookingfrom left to right of Figure 3;

Figure 7 is an enlarged, vertical sectional view taken substantially-along a plane, as indicated by the line 77 ofFigure 6, and

Figure. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 8'8 of Figure.4.

tent O Referring more specifically to the drawings, the fuel saver attachment in its entirety and comprising the invention is designated generally 10 and includes a boxlike container, designated generally 11, which is preferably formed of steel and preferably provided with a copper coated inner surface. The box-like container 11 includes a bottom wall 12, a front wall 13, a rear wall 14, an outer side wall 15 and an inner side wall 16. The container 11 may be of any desired size and any desired shape in cross section. The container 11 also includes a removable top wall or cover 17, the marginal portions of which rest on a. gasket 18 which is disposed between said cover portions and inturned flanges 19 of the walls 13, 14, 15 and' 16. The top wall or cover 17 is detachably secured in position by fastenings 20 which extend therethrough, through the gasket 18 and are threadedly secured to the flanges 19 and which fastenings are tightened so that the gasket 18 will seal the joint between the flanges 19 and the top wall or cover 17. The bottom 12 is provided with an extension form.- ing a bracket 21 which is adapted to rest on a part of an internal-combustion engine 22 and which is provided with elongated slots or openings 23 for receiving fastenings 24 by means of which the box or container 11 is demountably supported on the engine in substantially an upright position. The container 11 is preferably mounted outwardly with respect to one side of the engine 22 and above and adjacent a portion of the exhaust manifold 25 of the engine. The container 11 is also preferably mounted behind and adjacent the conventional engine carburetor 26 and also adjacent to the intake manifold 27, as seen in Figures 1 and 2.

Gasoline is supplied to the carburetor 26 from a storage tank, not shown, through a conduit or pipe 28. A branch conduit 29 communicates with and leads from the supply conduit 28, adjacent the container 11 and has a conventional filter 36 interposed therein. Amanually actuated shutoff valve 31, of any conventional construction, is mounted in the fuel supply conduit 28 between the branch conduit 29 and the carburetor 26 and is adapted to be opened and closed by swinging movement of an actuating lever 32 which is connected thereto and to which a link 33 is connected. A similar manually actuated shutoff valve 34 is mounted in the branch conduit 29 adjacent the supply conduit 28 and is similarly actuated by a lever 35 and a link 36. The links 33 and 36 extend in the same direction from the levers 32 and 35 and are adapted to be manually actuated from a point remote from the unit 10, as for example, from the dashboard of a motor vehicle, not shown.

As seen in Figures 3, 4 and 5, the box-like container 11 has a hollow interior defining a vaporizing chamber, designated generally 37, in the lower part of which is disposed a heating unit, designated generally 38. The heating unit 38 comprises a top wall or plate 39- and side walls 40. The walls 40 are disposed in upright positions on the bottom 12 between and spaced from the walls 13 and 14 and extend between and are securedv at their ends to the walls 15 and 16. Said walls 40 are secured to the walls 12, 15 and 16, as by welding as seen at 41, and the top wall 39 is disposed between and suitably secured to upper portions of the walls 40 and is likewise secured, as by welding, to the side walls 15 and 16. The walls 39 and 40 cooperate with a portion of the bottom 12 and walls 15 and 16, disposed between said walls 40, in, forming a heating chamber 42 of the heat ing unit 38 which is sealed off from the vaporizing chamber 37. A conduit 43 has one end connected to a boss 44 formed in the bottom 12 and opens into the heating chamber 42 and a second smaller conduit 45 has one end connected to a boss 46 of the bottom 12 and likewise communicates with the heating chamber 42. As best seen in Figure 2, the other end of the conduit 43 is tapped into the exhaust manifold 25, adjacent the container 11, and the opposite end of the conduit 45 is tapped into the intake manifold 27, adjacent the carburetor 26. Said conduit 45 is provided with a manually controlled shutoff valve 47. A conduit 48 has a portion extending through and having sealing engagement in a boss 49 of the side wall and has one end disposed in and in communication with the vaporizing chamber 37. The conduit 48 is provided with an outwardly opening check valve 50 located adjacent the inlet end thereof, which is disposed in the chamber 37. The opposite outlet end of the conduit 48 is tapped into the intake manifold 27, preferably adjacent the last mentioned outlet end of the conduit 45, as seen in Figures 1 and 2.

A regulating valve unit, designated generally 51, includes an elongated valve housing 52, preferably of cylindrical shape in cross section. The housing 52 has an integral bracket portion 53 which is secured against the outer side of the wall 13 by fastenings 54. One end of the housing 52 is closed except for a threaded boss 55 through which the threaded stem of a needle valve 56 threadedly extends inwardly of the valve housing and axially thereof. The valve housing 52 adjacent said aforementioned end is provided with an intake port 57 which opens into a chamber 58 in said valve housing, between said aforementioned housing end and a valve seat 59, which is disposed in the valve housing 52, adjacent said housing end. The other, outlet end of the branch conduit 29 is connected to said inlet port 57 and opens into the chamber 58. The valve seat 59, as seen in Figure 7, constitutes a substantially conical partition which projects generally toward the aforementioned housing end and which has a tapered center port 60 which is tapered away from the chamber 58 and which provides a seat for the adjacent tapered end 61 of the needle valve 56, which is disposed in the chamber 58.

The valve housing 52 has an internally threaded open opposite end 62 which is located remote from the valve seat or partition 59 and which is normally closed by a threaded plug 63 having an inwardly projecting stem 64. An expansion coil spring 65 has one end disposed against the inner end of the plug 63 and mounted loosely around its stem 64. The spring 65 is loosely disposed within the valve housing 52 and extends from the plug 63 to adjacent the valve seat 59. A valve stem 66 engages in the opposite end of the expansion spring 65 and has a head against which the opposite end of said spring 65 bears and which head is disposed between the last mentioned spring end and the concave side of the valve seat 59. The outer side of said valve head 67 which faces the valve seat 59 is shaped to conformably seat against the concave side thereof for sealing the valve chamber 58 from the larger chamber 68 of the valve housing in which the spring 65 and valve 66, 67 are disposed. The

housing 52 is provided with an outlet port 69 which communicates with the valve chamber 68 adjacent the threaded housing end 62 and to which is connected one end of a conduit 70 which communicates with said chamber 68.

A tube 71 of relatively small cross sectional size and preferably formed of brass is disposed within the upper part of the vaporizing chamber 37 and includes a bottom portion 72 which is disposed above and spaced from the top plate 39 of the heating unit 38. Said bottom portion 72, as best seen in Figure 8, is preferably divided intermediate of its ends and a sleeve portion 73, of substantially the same external and internal diameter as the tube 71, is interposed therein, in any suitable manner as by a sweat fit connection. Said inserted sleeve 73 intermediate of its ends is provided with a depending nozzle 74 having a bore 75 which tapers in cross sectional size toward its lower outlet end and the larger inner end of which is substantially smaller than the bore of the tube 71 and sleeve 73. One end of the tube 71 defines an upwardly extending leg 76 of the bottom portion 72 which has an outturned upper portion 77 which extends through the wall 13, near to but spaced from the upper end of the vaporizing chamber 37 and which is connected to the other end of the conduit 70 by a coupling 78. The other leg 79 of the tube 71 extends upwardly from the other end of the bottom portion 72 to adjacent the upper end of the vaporizing chamber 37 and to above the level of the opposite inlet end portion 77 of said tube. The open upper end of the tube end 77 is closed and sealed by a cap 80 which may be secured detachably thereon in any suitable manner as by a threaded connection. As seen in Figures 3 and 4, the tube 71 supports the nozzle 74 above and spaced from the top plate 39 of the heating unit and so that said nozzle discharges downwardly and toward said top plate.

A conduit 81 has one end connected to the rear wall 14 and communicating with the upper portion of the chamber 37 and the opposite end thereof, not shown, is adapted to open into the gasoline storage tank. The tube 81 contains a relief valve 82.

A small metal ball or sphere 83, constituting a valve, is mounted in the tube 71 or sleeve 73 and is of a diameter to seat on and close the enlarged upper inlet end of the nozzle bore 75 and is of substantially smaller diameter than the bore of the tube 71 or sleeve 73 but of considerably larger diameter than the enlarged inlet upper end of the nozzle bore 75, as clearly illustrated in Figure 8. In this figure the steel ball valve 83 is shown in a closed position.

When initially starting the engine 22, assuming that the engine is cold, the valve 31 is opened and the valve 34 is closed so that gasoline is supplied to the engine through the carburetor 26 in a conventional manner. The engine 22 is then operated in a conventional manner until it has had an opportunity to warm up to substantially a normal operating temperature. The links 33 and 36 are then operated manually for closing the valve 31 and opening the valve 34. The supply of gasoline to the carburetor through the line 28 will thus be cut off while gasoline will flow through the branch conduit 29 into the inlet chamber 58 of the valve 51. The needle valve 56 is set so that a proper amount of fuel or gasoline can pass through the passage 60 from the chamber 58 to the chamber 68 when the valve 67 is in an open position, which amount will vary depending upon the size of the engine 22. Accordingly, after the needle valve 56 has once been properly set no further adjustment thereof is required. The spring is relatively weak so that the pressure of the liquid fuel in the chamber 58 will displace the valve 67 downwardly to allow the fuel to pass through the valve port 60, through the valve chamber 68 and conduit into the tube 71. The valve 47 will be in a partially open position having been previously set to maintain a proper temperature in the heating chamber 42 and, accordingly, like the needle valve 56 will always be maintained in a properly adjusted open position. Accordingly, at the time that the liquid fuel is supplied to the tube 71 the chamber 42 will have been previously heated by the hot exhaust gases which are drawn into said chamber 42 through the conduit 43 from the exhaust manifold 25 by the suction supplied to the chamber 42 through the conduit 45 from the intake manifold 27. Thus, hot exhaust gases will be continuously drawn into the heating chamber 42 and the cooler gases extracted therefrom and discharged into the intake manifold 27, this constituting only a small part of the exhaust gases passing through the exhaust manifold 25. Thus, the vaporizing chamber 37 will have been substantially heated when the liquid fuel is initially admitted to the tube 71.

As the liquid fuel flows down the leg 76 of the tube 71 and into the sleeve 73 it will strike the ball valve 83 and unsea'ts said ball valve from the iet bore 75 and force the ball valve 83 to the right as seen in Figure 8 toward the other tube leg 79. Accordingly, a part of the gasoline or liquid fuel will escape downwardly through the nozzle 74 and will be discharged in the form of a fine jet toward the heated top plate 39 and upon striking said plate will be instantly vaporized. The vaporized fuel will fill the vaporizing chamber 37 and a part thereof will be drawn through the outlet conduit 48 by the suction therein supplied from the intake manifold 27. The outwardly opening check valve 50 of the supply conduit 48 will open away from the vaporizing chamber 37 primarily in response to the suction in the conduit 48 and Will not be opened by the pressure in the vaporizing chamber 37 alone. The check valve 50 additionally functions to close automatically to prevent a backfire in the engine 22 discharging into the vapor chamber 37 through the conduit 48.

The liquid fuel flowing down the tube leg 76 and into the sleeve 73 will maintain the valve 83 in an open position until the heat within the vaporizing chamber 37 heats the fuel which has passed the valve 83 and is in the tube leg 79 sufliciently to vaporize the fuel in the leg '79 for creating a back pressure in said tube 71. When this occurs, the ball valve 83 will be forced back into the sleeve 73 and will resume its closed position as seen in Figure 8, preventing further escape of the liquid fuel into the vaporizing chamber 37, so that the pressure in the chamber 37 will be diminished as the vaporized fuel is removed therefrom through the conduit 48. The fact that the tube leg '79 extends to above the tube leg 76 and is located more remote from the supply of cool gasoline to the tube 71 from the conduit 70, will cause a greater pressure to be initially developed in the tube end 79 than in the leg 76 for closing the valve 83. However, the liquid fuel Will also be vaporized in the tube portions 72, 76 and 77 and also in the sleeve 73 so that when the valve is moved to a closed position as seen in Figure 8 a sufficient back pressure will be created by the vaporized fuel in the tube 71 to produce a pressure in the supply conduit 70 and valve chamber 68 which, in combination with the spring 65 will be adequate to overcome the pressure in the chamber 58 for displacing the valve 67 into a closed position against the valve seat 59 to thus shut off the supply of liquid fuel to the tube 71. Thereafter, as the vaporized fuel is removed from the vaporizing chamber 37 through the conduit 48 the heat in the chamber 37 will be diminished thereby permitting the fuel to cool and liquefy in the tube 71. This will reduce the pressure in the chamber 68 so that the pressure of the fuel in the chamber 58 will again be sufiicient to overcome the pressure of the valve 65 to reopen the metering port 60 for supplying additional liquid fuel to the tube 71, as previously described. When this occurs, the ball valve 83 will again be displaced to the right as seen in Figure 8 from its closed position, in the manner as previously described, so that additional fuel will be discharged from the nozzle 74 toward the heating unit 38 to replenish the supply of vaporized fuel in the chamber 37. The aforedescribed operation will be repeated intermittently while the engine is in operation. From time to time too great a pressure may develop in the chamber 37, as for example if the engine 22 is permitted to idle for a considerable period of time. When this occurs, the excess pressure will cause the relief valve 82 to open so that the excess of the vaporized fuel can escape from the chamber 37 through the conduit 81 into the fuel storage tank wherein the fuel will be readily liquefied.

Due to the fact that the tube 71 contains a much greater percentage of fuel in comparison to the capacity of its bore than the chamber 37, the pressure of the vaporized fuel therein will always be substantially greater than the pressure in the chamber 37 so that a back pressure cannot be developed in the nozzle bore 75 from 6 the chamber 37, sufficient to unseat the ball valve 83, as the relief valve 82 will open before this could occur.

From the foregoing, it will 'be seen that vaporized fuel will be supplied to the engine 22 directly through the intake manifold 27 and this vaporized fuel will function much more efiiciently than liquid fuel supplied directly to the carburetor 26 so that when the attachment or unit 10 is in operation and the valve 31 is closed, the engine 22 will operate with much greater power and efficiency and with a greatly reduced fuel consumption. The accelerator is utilized in a conventional manner when the unit 10 is employed for regulating the supply of air through the carburetor to the intake manifold 27 and which is mixed with the vaporized fuel supplied to the intake manifold through the conduit 48 for thus regulating the speed of operation of the engine 22.

Before stopping operation of the engine 22, when operation thereof is to be interrupted for a suflicient time 'to permit the engine to cool, the links 33 and 36 are again manually actuated to close the valve 34 and open the valve 31 so that gasoline or liquid fuel will be again supplied to the engine through the carburetor 26 before operation of the engine is interrupted and so that the engine can thereafter be started in a conventional manner and as previously described.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I. claim as my invention:

1. A fuel conserving unit for an internal-combustion engine comprising a container defining a vaporizing chamher, a liquid fuel supply conduit leading to said vaporizing chamber, a heating unit mounted in the bottom of said vaporizing chamber, said fuel supply conduit having a discharge portion disposed in the vaporizing chamber and opening above and toward said heating unit, and an outlet conduit having an inlet end opening into the vaporizing chamber and an outlet end opening into the intake manifold of an internal-combustion engine whereby vaporized fuel from the vaporizing chamber is supplied directly to the intake manifold, said fuel supply conduit including a branch conduit leading to the vaporizing chamber and connected to a main fuel supply conduit leading to the engine carburetor, a manually operated shutoff valve disposed in said main fuel supply conduit between the branch conduit and carburetor, and a second manually operated shutoff valve disposed in said branch conduit for selectively controlling the flow of liquid fuel to either the carburetor or vaporizing chamber when the engine is in operation.

2. A fuel conserving unit for an internal-combustion engine comprising a container defining a vaporizing chamber, a liquid fuel supply conduit leading to said vaporizing chamber, a heating unit mounted in the bottom of said vaporizing chamber, said fuel supply conduit having a discharge portion disposed in the vaporizing chamber and opening above and toward said heating unit, and an outlet conduit having an inlet end opening into the vaporizing chamber and an outlet end opening into the intake manifold of an internal-combustion engine Whereby vaporized fuel from the vaporizing chamber is sup plied directly to the intake manifold, said fuel supply conduit including a closed end disposed in the upper part of said vaporizing chamber and above other portions of said fuel supply conduit located in the vaporizing chamber, the fuel supply conduit portion disposed in the vaporizing chamber including a bottom portion disposed above and spaced from the heating unit and in which said discharge portion is disposed, and said discharge portion comprising a downwardly extending nozzle having a bore tapered toward its lower outlet end and of substantially smaller cross sectional size at its inlet end than the bore of the fuel supply conduit portion disposed in said vaporizing chamber.

3. A fuel conserving unit as in claim 2, a regulating valve unit including a housing interposed in said fuel supply conduit externally of and adjacent the vaporizing chamber, a valve disposed in said housing, a spring urging said valve to a closed position against the pressure of the liquid fuel, the pressure exerted by said spring against said valve being less than the normal pressure of the fuel, and said restricted bore of the discharge nozzle restricting the flow of fuel to the vaporizing chamber whereby the heated vaporized fuel in the vaporizing chamber vaporizes the fuel in the fuel supply conduit portion located within the vaporizing chamber for producing a back pressure in said valve housing for cooperation with said spring for closing the valve to shut off the supply of fuel to the vaporizing chamber when an excessive amount of the vaporized fuel is contained in said vaporizing chamber.

4. A fuel conserving unit as in claim 3, and a metal ball valve of substantially smaller diameter than the diameter of the bore of the fuel supply conduit portion located in the vaporizing chamber disposed in said conduit portion bore and gravity urged toward the bottom part thereof, said ball valve being of a diameter substantially greater than the diameter of the inlet end of said nozzle bore to seat thereon for shutting off the supply of fuel from the conduit to the nozzle bore, and said ball valve being displaced out of engagement with the nozzle bore by movement of the fuel through said conduit portion toward its closed end when said spring pressed valve is in an open position.

5. A fuel conserving unit as in claim 4, and said valve unit having metering means for regulating the flow of liquid fuel therethrough when the spring pressed valve is in an open position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,201,976 Lovejoy Oct. 17, 1916 1,424,142 Hill July 25, 1922 1,749,031 lngleton Mar. 4, 1930 2,049,687 Chamberlain et a1 Aug. 4, 1936 2,218,922 Newbery Oct. 22, 1940 2,548,989 McLeod Apr. 17, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 338,276 Great Britain Nov. 20, 1930 

